We have hired Adele Lapointe, owner and operator of Chaos to Clarity, to work alongside many of our clients as they prepare themselves for their move. There are many qualified organizers willing to step into this role, yet we have found Adele’s temperament a perfect fit, especially for our senior clients. Most often time is a factor, and Adele has always responded to our sense of urgency. She listens actively, offers non-judgmental assessments, utilizes the creative skills necessary in this role, makes no assumptions as to what our clients keep vs. items no longer needed, and once decided she has stayed with the process until items have been donated or discarded. We would not hesitate to recommend Adele Lapointe and her team!

Are your holiday decorations up yet? I know for some it may be a little early, but I have noticed that a lot of people I know are putting up their decorations early this year, me included. I just wanted to share a few tips to think about when bringing out your holiday decorations or when putting them away this year.

1) Consider what your decorations are stored in. Try to avoid cardboard boxes. They wear with time and loose their strength so they don’t store as well. Use bins to keep them clean, dry and undamaged. Using clear bins or same colour bins helps to easily identify them in your storage area. Red or green bins are great colours for the holiday decorations. You can usually find them on sale around this time.

2) Don’t forget to declutter and give away. When making room for your Christmas decorations consider decluttering and giving away now, so when the season is over and your decorations are put away it is done and looks great.

3) Do you like to decorate different rooms? As an organizer I always suggest to keep like items together but if you have multiple rooms to decorate consider packing up your decorations according to rooms. This will save time next year.

4) Having guests for the holiday? Make up guest baskets ahead of time with clean towels, face clothes, bathroom accessories and even throw in a pair of slippers. One less thing to worry about.

5) Are extra pillows and blankets taking up linen closet space? Use a large canvas hanging wardrobe in one of your spare room closets or laundry room to store them. This keeps them clean, and gives you a lot more storage space.